Did you know that a gerbil shouldn’t be bathed using water?

Due to the fact that gerbils as a species originally game desert regions, they are not used to water or large amounts of moisture.  Bathing them would be extremely uncomfortable and is not recommended unless instructed to do so by a vet. In the following video, we can see a typical reaction of a gerbil encountering water. While the pet owner in question may have been well-intentioned, the gerbil clearly did not like the experience.

With all of this being said, one should not assume that gerbils are dirty animals – they’re actually very clean!

If you watch your pets when they’re in their cage, you will notice that they clean their fur quite often. This keeps their coat looking clean. If you have more than one gerbil you will also notice them grooming one other, which also assists in the cleaning process.

While gerbils do it naturally, you can also play a part to keep their coat cleaner and silkier.

Chinchilla sand can be purchased from your local pet store. Place a little sand into a glass or metal bowl and watch your gerbils roll as shown below:

The sand will help clean their fur and will make it very shiny and silky.

Don’t be too worried if your gerbils don’t do it at the very beginning though. Some take a little while to get used to it. However, you should only leave the bowl of sand in for a maximum 10 minutes per day, otherwise they will use it for a litter box!

Younger gerbils will also eat the sand, they’ll learn pretty quickly that it isn’t food.